In November 2014, fisherman Carlos Wagner Silva discovered a fossilisedhumerus on the beach at Itapeua. In May 2015, paleontologist Manuel Alfredo Medeiros and his students were sent in and they secured several bones, including the holotype, UFMA. 1.10.1960a, which consists of six vertebrae, and a paratype containing around six to seven vertebrae, a humerus and a partial ischium - the largest preserved vertebra reached up to 40 centimetres (16 in). Because the location where the holotype was found is an intertidal area, excavating the holotype was very hard and could only be excavated around four hours a day during each daily tidal cycle.[1] In 2019, the species Itapeuasaurus cajapioensis was named and described.[1]
